Kansas Farmers Join Syngenta Lawsuit

More Farmers Join Lawsuit Against Syngenta for GMO Corn Losses

Although China finally approved import of Syngenta’s GMO corn strain, called Viptera, more farmers are joining a class action lawsuit against the company.

Most recently, three corn farmers in Kansas joined the lawsuit against Swiss-based Syngenta, which alleges that the company misled corn farmers in the US that China, the largest purchaser of US-grown corn, would quickly approve the Viptera strain, then put the corn on the market for farmers to purchase. US farmers, from small farmers to large industrial farm complexes and grain exporters have joined the Syngenta class action to recoup some of the billions of dollars lost because China had not yet approved the Viptera strain of GMO corn.

Syngenta faces over 100 lawsuits in the US that claim the company negligently caused severe financial losses to farmers in the country. One group of farmers and grain exporters, including Cargill and Archer Daniels Midland, have asked the Judicial Panel of Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) to consolidate their lawsuits.

Oran Winter of Sedgwick County, Wayne Schmidt of Reno County and Eugene Goering of McPherson County filed individual lawsuits against Syngenta in a federal court in Wichita, Kansas.

“Essentially what Syngenta did, back in April 2012, is it misled corn producers and investors that foreign governments like China would allow GMO corn into their nations,” one of the plaintiffs’ attorneys said in a statement. “And that turned out to be false.”

Syngenta spokesman Paul Minehart stated on Tuesday, January 20th, after the lawsuits were filed that the company disputes the contention of misleading information and negligence that led farmers to lose money. Minehart said that Syngenta has always been in compliance with US law. The company “strongly upholds the right of growers to have access to approved new technologies that can increase both their productivity and crop yields,” he said in a statement.

Corn farmers in South Carolina and beyond grow and harvest corn to be sold in a commodity-based system. In other words, the corn grown by an individual farmer will be gathered, commingled, and consolidated with that produced with thousands of different farms and passed through local, regional, and terminal distribution centers. US Corn sitting in a terminal distribution center is then shipped to foreign markets through exporters. To maintain the integrity of the corn, it is essential that exported shipments are free of contamination so that they are not rejected by trade partners outside of the United States.

The Strom Law Firm Pursues Claims on Behalf Of South Carolina’s Corn Farmers Against Syngenta

If you or someone you love grew, harvested, and sold non- MIR 162 corn on a commercial basis, or if you received revenue from non-MIR 162 corn under a crop-share arrangement from November 2013 to now, you may be eligible to participate in a class action seeking to recover compensation for lost profits from Syngenta. The Syngenta Corn Lawsuit attorneys at the Strom Law Firm, LLC offer a free consultation and flexible appointment times. Do not wait until it’s too late. Contact us today. 803.252.4800

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